Alamy Live News. 3BDP832 Manchester, UK. 25th May, 2025. Aston Villa players surround referee Thomas Bramall after he disallowed a Morgan Rogers goal during the Manchester United vs Aston Villa Premier League match at Old Trafford, Manchester. Picture credit should read: Andrew Yates/Sportimage Credit: Sportimage Ltd/Alamy Live News This is an Alamy Live News image and may not be part of your current Alamy deal . If you are unsure, please contact our sales team to check.
Aston Villa surrounded referee Thomas Bramall after he disallowed a Morgan Rogers goal against Man Utd
(Credits: Alamy Live News.)
The Premier League have issued a statement on Morgan Rogers’ disallowed goal against Manchester United.
Unai Emery’s side missed out on Champions League qualification after a 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford on the last day of the campaign.
Villa would have been hoping to make short work of a United side who were left crestfallen after Wednesday night’s Europa League final defeat against Tottenham.
Their task of achieving a positive result was rendered a tougher assignment when goalkeeper Emi Martinez, possibly playing his last game for the club, was sent off for hauling down Rasmus Hojlund and denying the striker a clear goalscoring opportunity.
Villa rode their luck after the break as United piled on the pressure, but they appeared to have taken a major step towards qualification for Europe’s elite club competition with 17 minutes remaining.
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There appeared no danger when the ball was rolling aimlessly towards Altay Bayindir but the United goalkeeper failed to gain full control and allowed Rogers to dispossess him and score a vital goal.
Referee Thomas Bramall, however, had already blown his whistle in the belief that Rogers had committed a foul which meant VAR was unable to intervene and come to Villa’s rescue.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Morgan Rogers of Aston Villa challenges Altay Bayindir of Manchester United before scoring a goal which was later ruled out by VAR during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Aston Villa FC at Old Trafford on May 25, 2025 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Neville Williams/Aston Villa FC via Getty Images)
Morgan Rogers thought he had capitalised on an Altay Bayindir error (Picture: Getty)
‘The referee’s call was a free kick to Manchester United with Bayindir deemed to be in control of the ball before Rogers gained possession,’ read a Premier League match centre statement on X.
‘The whistle was blown by the referee before the ball entered the goal, therefore the incident was not reviewable by the VAR.’
Emery was left fuming on the sidelines but his frustration turned to pure anger minutes later when Amad Diallo powered home a Bruno Fernandes cross and headed United into the lead.
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery (left) speaks to referee Thomas Bramall after the Premier League match at Old Trafford, Manchester. Picture date: Sunday May 25, 2025. PA Photo. See PA story SOCCER Man Utd. Photo credit should read: Martin Rickett/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: EDITORIAL USE ONLY No use with unauthorised audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.
Unai Emery confronted referee Thomas Bramall after the game (Credits: Martin Rickett/PA Wire)
Ruben Amorim’s side secured a rare win with three minutes remaining when Christian Eriksen, playing his last game for the club, converted a penalty donated to him by Fernandes.
Defeat for Villa means they were unable to take advantage of Newcastle’s shock home loss against Everton and will play in the Europa League next season.
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